The Blackhawks' top offensive players have all struggled to help Chicago get goals this season and it is a problem.
The Blackhawks' top offensive players have all struggled to help Chicago get goals this season and it is a problem.
The Chicago Blackhawks are dead last in the NHL and a big reason for their place in the standings and all of the losing is the lack of offensive production by their top players.
The Blackhawks have only scored 2.33 goals per game and that ranks last in the NHL this season too. Connor Bedard has noticeably not been scoring goals after many expected a big step forward this season with better talent surrounding him at 5-on-5 and on the power play.
That hasn't been the case as Bedard has scored three goals this season, the last one coming 10 games ago on October 26 against the Dallas Stars in the ninth game of the season. He scored 22 goals as an 18-year-old rookie last season in just 68 games, but has barely found the back of the net through 18 games this season.
Even though Bedard is expected to be the leader offensively and he still leads the team with 13 points, it goes beyond him. It has been disappointing for the Blackhawks with the lack of offense coming from players like Philipp Kurashev, Tyler Bertuzzi, Teuvo Teravainen, and Taylor Hall.
Kurashev broke out for 18 goals and 54 points in 75 games last season beside Bedard, but has just three goals and four points through 17 games playing in the top-6. He ranks 13th on the Blackhawks in points. He had just one goal in his first eight games this season and has only one goal in his last five games.
Bertuzzi, also playing in the top-6 and getting power-play time, has five goals and six points in 18 games this season. This poor start comes after a 21-goal, 43-point season with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2023-24. The last six games have seen one goal and one assist from him and the gritty winger is on pace for worse numbers than last season.
Teravainen has been playing on the third line because his production disappeared after a great start. He has had a very underrated career as the skilled veteran scored 138 goals and 415 points in 555 games for the Carolina Hurricanes since his departure from the Blackhawks. He has four goals and eight points in 18 games this season which isn't horrible, but three goals and seven of those points came in the first five games. He has one goal in the past 13 games.
Hall just recently sat out as a healthy scratch. That's how his season has been going. It's not always the easiest coming back from a big injury like Hall has had to, but more offense is also expected from him playing in the top-6. He has two goals and six points in 17 games. In the past six games, Hall has recorded two assists (both coming in the same game). In his last 10 games, just three assists.
If it weren't for Seth Jones having a strong bounce back to the season before landing on the injured reserve, Ryan Donato having a stellar start to the season with eight goals and 11 points in 16 games, and a couple of fourth line players producing well for their spot in the lineup, then the Blackhawks would be in a much worse place offensively.
The top players need to start figuring it out. It is relatively early, but the season is already slipping away. While it is a rebuilding year, the Blackhawks have to improve from last season, especially with a much better group of players on the roster, and it starts with the top players.
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